Lebanese ex-general gets 2 years as spy for Israel

Lebanese judicial officials say a former army general has been sentenced to two years in prison for giving information to Israel.

Lebanon and Israel are in a state of war. Spying for or collaborating with Israel can be punishable by death.

Tuesday's sentence of former Brig. Gen. Fayez Karam means he will spend six more months in jail. He has been in prison since mid-2009, said the officials on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

Israel refused to comment.

In the late 1980s, Karam led Lebanon's counterespionage unit. Karam, who ran for a parliament seat in 2009, is a senior member of the Free Patriotic Movement of Christian leader and Hezbollah ally Michel Aoun.

More than 100 people have been arrested in Lebanon since 2009 on suspicion of spying.